What to consider when Hiring a wedding Photographer
There is a lot to consider when looking for an event photographer. Event photography is very different from other types of photography. A good event photographer should be able to shoot everything, in every lighting situation, relatively quickly.
If I were looking for a photographer to capture my once in a lifetime event I’d do my research because there are no second chances.
First you want a professional who shows up on time and dresses appropriately.
You want to find out about their experience level how many years have they’ve been shooting events? Did they go to school for this? And is this their full time job?
You want to read their yelp reviews and ask for references. Yelp is uncensored resources when it comes to reviews and any professional photographer should be able to give out a handful of past clients that will speak on their behalf.
You need to find out if they bring professional back up equipment and what steps do they take to back up their work after an event.
You want to find a photographer that will get involved in your event. Someone that will show you weddings with similar lighting situations, someone that will scout the venue before hand and someone that will help you lay out your time line relative to light.
When looking at a photographer’s portfolio you need to consider their portfolio as a whole and look for a consistency in their style. You want to fall in love with all the images not just a few. In general overly photo-shopped portfolios are red flag.
I’ve been shooting events for years. I graduated from brooks institute of photography. I think part of a being an event photographer is to plan for cameras to fail so that when they do know body knows about it because your backed up. My motto is that I keep a back up for my back up. After an event I back up all my files to my desk top, lap top, two external hard drives, and online gallery and a disc. I have a 5-start rating on yelp because I take care of my clients. I get involved with my events. Before I meet with clients I research their venue and show them images from wedding I’ve shot with similar lighting situations so they know what their wedding photos are going to look like before their event. I also go over time lines and advise clients as far as lighting. When you look at my portfolio know that nothing has been photo shopped. I believe part of being a professional photographer is not having to rely on Photoshop to make great photos; you should be able to do it in camera.
I recently read that the number one regret most brides have is their wedding photographer because after the cakes been eaten, the dress has been boxed and guest have all gone home all you have is you photos. Most brides don’t consider that when choosing their wedding photographer.